A gold-adorned sheela-na-gig looks out defiantly from the former Bessborough mother and baby home, on the outskirts of Cork city, making its mark on the building’s otherwise bare walls.
This contemporary take on an ancient tradition of stone carvings is one of a growing number of creations by the anonymous pair of Dublin-based women behind Project Sheela, a street-art trail that aims to address some of the injustices of Ireland’s past.
“We feel that there’s a lot of open wounds in Ireland, and a lot of negative history, and we wanted to pay tribute in recognition of some of that and add some healing,” says one of the artists, who began putting sheela-na-gigs around Ireland in 2020, choosing sites that are significant to the women’s-rights movement.
Today, to mark International Women’s Day – “a day of protest to draw attention” to feminist issues – they are unveiling the first of their annual series of new sheela-na-gigs.
The original meaning of the sheela-na-gig, which dates back to the pre-Christian period, is disputed. “There are theories that it was similar to a gargoyle and that it was a warning against overt sexuality in women,” one half of Project Sheela says.
By contrast, some academics believe it has more pagan roots, the carvings said to have talismanic powers that bring good luck and fertility to those who come into contact with them.
“Modern feminists have adopted the sheela as a symbol of woman power and unashamed sexuality, and not being ashamed about the woman form ... In Ireland, I think, people have connected with it more than in Europe, because we have such a history of oppression when it comes to our bodies and when it comes to sexuality,” the artist says about the project’s popularity online.
Project Sheela’s first location was in Sandycove in south Co Dublin. “In 1974 a group of women invaded the Forty Foot, traditionally a male only swimming area,” they wrote in the caption of its Instagram post, in March 2020. “Women have swum in the area ever since this protest. This Sheela thanks these women for fighting for basic rights, so we can all enjoy the Forty Foot.”
As the project enters its sixth year, its trail of sheela-na-gigs includes the former Magdalene laundry on Sean McDermott Street in Dublin, and Trinity College, where Project Sheela put up a plaque to honour Dr Noël Browne.
As minister for health between 1948 and 1951, he backed the mother-and-child scheme, which would have provided free healthcare for all mothers and children up to the age of 16. The plan was scrapped, and Browne resigned, after opposition from the Catholic Church.
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The artists have also put up plaques at the site of Pornhub’s former registered offices in Dublin, at City Quay, the headquarters of Transgender Equality Network Ireland, and the banks of the Grand Canal in Tullamore, Co Offaly, in memory of Ashling Murphy, who was murdered there in 2022.
One of their key goals is to highlight the connection between location and meaning: when art is “in the right context it can be more powerful”.
They also want to form a link “between the past, the present and things that still need to be addressed”, which they have done by highlighting historic events and early champions of women’s rights, from Hanna Sheehy-Skeffington to Constance Markievicz, combined with “more recent issues about image-based sexual abuse and the online world and how that’s affecting and impacting women’s-rights issues”.
The artists decided to keep their identities secret in order not to distract from the symbol at the heart of the project. “The sheela itself, it’s not ours ... To keep the project anonymous allows for it to belong to everyone, not to become about a particular artist or about ego.”
Each sheela is unique; some have flowing locks of hair, others have bulging eyes and ears, a few pout and others stick out their tongues. The prominent vulvas at the centre of each design come in a variety of shapes, sizes and colours.
“Every vulva is different in real life as well, and we want to recognise that and celebrate the beauty of the woman form. Sometimes that’s not the message that we got growing up in Ireland, that vulvas can be a beautiful thing and we can be proud of them and celebrate them.”
Although the artists say the response online has been overwhelmingly positive, not all of the project’s messages have been well received. They put one sheela-na-gig on Waterloo Road, which is historically part of Dublin’s red-light district, inspired partly by “a friend who is a former escort” and had recently started a petition against Escort Ireland, a website where men can leave reviews of sex workers.
“The reviews, both ‘positive’ and ‘negative’, are disturbing, dehumanising and revealing,” they wrote in their Instagram post about the sheela-na-gig. “Either it is acceptable for men to rate and review women’s appearance, personality and sexual ‘performance’ or it is not. Money being exchanged does not negate this misogyny.”
Their comment prompted a lot of negative responses, they say. “It’s a controversial opinion to have in certain feminist circles, to be critical of the sex trade, and we as a project feel that a lot of people that are critical of us or anyone that may object to the sex trade ... will be from quite privileged backgrounds – mostly online, maybe on OnlyFans – and are in situations where they’re not directly in danger.
“Feminism for us is about all women; it’s not just one group. We also believe people have the right to do what they want with their own bodies ... We believe in the Nordic model that criminalises the buying of sex and not the selling, because that protects the women.
“The majority of women that we’re talking about here are not there by choice. To talk about those things ... you’ll get a lot of online abuse, but we’re quite able for it.”
The artists sell some of the plaques they make, along with other merchandise, to help fund Project Sheela, which they hope will continue to grow both in Ireland and abroad; they also give 10 per cent of the money they raise to charity. Recipients include Saoirse women’s refuge, Dublin Rape Crisis Centre, Sexual Violence Centre Cork and Women’s Aid. Last year the pair donated proceeds to Palestine Red Crescent Society and Doctors without Borders. They are deciding which charity to contribute to in 2025.
“The project has meant a lot to a lot of people, and we’ve heard a lot of nice things. To move people and to make something that makes people feel something is a really beautiful thing,” one of the artists says; they believe its “mix of fun, celebration, remembrance and tribute is what people enjoy” about their work.
“Dublin Rape Crisis Centre has been a great supporter of the project. When we did them as a location we left the sheela outside their office, and they brought it in, so they have it in the hallway. We got a really nice message last week from someone that had visited Dublin Rape Crisis Centre. They said they had a really difficult session that day and when they saw the sheela, on the way out, it had given them strength.”
Dublin Rape Crisis Centre’s 24-hour national helpline is at 1800-778888. Women’s Aid’s 24-hour national helpline is at 1800-341900. Saoirse Domestic Violence Services’ helpline is at 1800-911221. Sexual Violence Centre Cork is at 1800-496496 (or text 087-1533393). If in immediate danger, call or text 112
